“He called in sick.” Chief Dade immediately turned his attention back to the paperwork in front of him—and I saw a word at the top of the first page that caught my attention.
“Chief?” I took a step forward. “That looks like—retirement paperwork.”
“It’s just missing my signature.” He leaned forward and grabbed a pen.
“Hold on.” I walked over to his desk and put my hand down on the papers. “What the fuck?”
“My time is up, Liam.” Chief Dade looked up at me again. “I got a call from the mayor this morning. Early retirement…”
“You can’t do this.” I dug my nails into the stack of papers. “You—why?”
“I’d like to walk out here with my dignity intact.” He shrugged. “I can either sign this or wait for the mayor to fire me—either way; this is my last day.”
“You haven’t done anything wrong! This place is running better than it has in years! Our numbers are the best in the city!” I tried to rationalize it in my head.
“Doesn’t matter.” He shook his head back and forth. “The mayor feels like it could be better—and he has the final say.”
“No, he doesn’t.” I lifted my hand. “You and I both know who has the final say in this town.”
“I should have known it would only be a matter of time.” He sighed and leaned back in his chair. “I wanted to believe Robert Townsend would be happy with what he had—that was foolish. He wants to control the entire city, and as long as I sit in this chair, he’ll always have resistance on the north side.”
“So, what? He just wants to burn it to the ground?” I exhaled sharply and shook my head. “The cops are already looking the other way—now we’re going to wonder if every fire we get called to is Robert Townsend’s doing—fuck!”
“There’s money to be made.” Chief Dade’s shoulders slumped forward. “Buy the buildings at a discount, get a huge insurance policy, and then collect on it—that’s what the south side has been dealing with, even if they can’t prove it.”
“Yeah, because Robert Townsend doesn’t let the investigators do their fucking job.” I looked over my shoulder at the guys who were getting ready for the day. “Someone has to put an end to that bastard’s bullshit.”
“I wish it was that easy.” He sighed. “But, that’s not my fight—not anymore. All I can do is sign the paperwork and move on. I’d rather not find out what sort of scandal the mayor would come up with to remove me from this position.”
“I know who Robert Townsend is going to replace you with.” I grabbed the door and slammed it. “And I know how he’s getting away with it…”
“Huh?” Chief Dade tilted his head as I turned back around. “How could you know?”
I sat down and told Chief Dade everything. I didn’t feel like I had anything to lose at that point. Chief Dade deserved to know the truth—especially if it was going to cost him his job. He was about to become another victim in Robert Townsend’s game—one that was started because of Billy. Chief Dade was stunned when I finished going over the details of how all of us got to that point—how Gerard became tangled up in a web of deceit because of the deal he was forced to make with the bastard who had taken over our city. There was silence for a moment, or maybe he was just too shocked to speak. He held up the pen and stared at it—then he put it down without signing the paperwork.
“Fuck this.” He grabbed the paperwork and flung it across the room. “God damn it!”
“I know…” I sighed and nodded. “We can’t let him win. We have to find a way to fight back because it’s more than your job at risk. If he makes Gerard the new chief…”
“Gerard doesn’t need that on his conscious.” Chief Dade exhaled sharply. “If I refuse to sign the paperwork, they’ll have to put me on administrative leave until they can push the termination through city hall. That will keep them from being able to name a new chief immediately. I’m calling my lawyer.”
“I’m going to find Gerard.” I nodded and stood.
19
Gerard
I called in sick to work, but it wasn’t because Robert Townsend told me to. It was because I had a meeting with Special Agent Jones. I told him a little about my situation, but I didn’t tell him everything until we were face-to-face. The FBI was aware of Robert Townsend, and they had him a list of people they were watching, but they didn’t have any way to make charges stick. The FBI had been getting railroaded by the local authorities, and every time they found something worth investigating, they ran into a brick wall. I couldn’t tear down that brick wall with my bare hands—I couldn’t fight Robert Townsend on my own—but I could wear a wire. I could risk everything for a chance to hold the woman I loved in my arms again—I could do it if I knew she was safe—that her family was safe. Maybe Robert Townsend was right in a way—perhaps I was an honorable man, just not the kind he was looking for.
“Okay.” I read over my statement and put it down in front of Agent Jones. “I’ll sign this as soon as the agreement is drawn up.”
“It should be here any minute.” He nodded. “We’ll have agents following the Lawson family immediately, and we’ll even have one waiting at the airport when Mr. Lawson’s plane lands. If there’s any sign of trouble—or if this goes south—we’ll get them out of New York. The same goes for your parents and anyone close enough for Robert Townsend to target.”
“Robert Townsend didn’t have his guys search me after I visited his club the first time. I think his arrogance may be his downfall.” I stared at my statement. “He truly believes he’s untouchable.”
“He is.” Agent Jones sighed. “We’ve tried to get someone inside his organization for years, but he’s always a step ahead of us.”
“Hopefully I took enough of those steps on my own and was desperate enough that his guard will be down.” I looked over at the fax machine as it started printing something. “I guess that’s the agreement?”